Psalms 69-70
But may all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, "God is great!" – Psalms 70:4 NLT
Who do you call on in times of need? When your world is caving in around you, where do you turn for help?
In our two Psalms today we hear the David calling out to God. He is going through a time of difficulty. These are essentially entries in his daily prayer journal, containing frank and honest declarations of just how he is feeling. He pulls no punches. He is painfully open about how he he feeling. And the amazing thing is, both of these are songs. They were intended to be sung. Why would David put these kinds of words to music? They make some country western songs sound downright upbeat! I think they are a reminder to us all that difficult days will come. We will face adversity in this life. Jesus even promised us that we would. So what do we do when the tough times come? We follow David's example. We call out to God. We tell Him how we are feeling. We express our emotions, openly and honestly to the only one who can do anything about it.
Look at the words David uses. He asks for God to save him. He cries out to God to rescue him. He confesses his sin. He describes his circumstances in all their gory details. And things don't appear to be changing. But he keeps calling out. "But I keep right on praying to you, LORD, hoping this is the time you will show me favor. In your unfailing love, O God, answer my prayer with your sure salvation" (Psalms 69:13 NLT). David doesn't give up just because God doesn't seem to show up. He keeps calling out because he knows that his only hope for salvation is his God. No one or nothing else can provide what he needs. Salvation and comfort will come only from the Lord. So he keeps crying out. "Answer my prayers, O LORD, for your unfailing love is wonderful. Turn and take care of me, for your mercy is so plentiful" (Psalms 69:16 NLT). And in spite of the seeming silence and delay of God, David is confident that He is going to act. He will rescue. "The humble will see their God at work and be glad. Let all who seek God's help live in joy" (Psalms 69:32 NLT).
Do you have that kind of confidence in God? Do you cry out to Him when times are tough? Do you keep calling on Him even when it appears as if He is not hearing you or answering? David trusted in God. He was confident that even the delays were part of God's sovereign plan for his life, so he was willing to wait. And when God answered, David was willing to give God all the praise. These two Psalms are songs of faith in God. They are honest reminders that life on this fallen planet can sometimes be hard. But our God is always faithful. Calling out to Him in times of difficulty is an expression of our faith. Trusting Him in the hard times is not easy. Trusting Him in the good times is. Our faith is best tested in the crucible of crisis. Do we trust Him? Then let us call out to Him. Let us turn to Him and no one else. If we believe He is our only hope, then we will call on Him religiously and relentlessly. Just as David did.
Father, I want to trust You more. I want my prayer life to reflect my faith in You. I want it to show that You truly are my only hope for salvation during times of difficulty. But I tend to reveal that I don't really believe You will rescue me. I turn elsewhere. I try to solve my own problems far too often. Give me the faith of David. May I sing of Your salvation, even in the midst of the trials of life. Amen